Helpless
by TheNorthernBelle
Summary: Soulmate AU - the events leading up to Leia's rescue aboard the Death Star, but with a twist. What if Han had been motivated by something other than the money?
1. Han

_Notes: Everyone is born with the first Words that their Soulmate will speak to them tattooed on their body. It is very taboo to show these Words to someone else, but if you do, it is a uniquely strong sign of trust and friendship._

 _I borrowed lines of dialogue from Star Wars: A New Hope. Nothing belongs to me; all respective rights belong to the man, George Lucas._

"They're gonna execute her! Look, a few minutes ago you said you didn't want to just wait here to be captured. Now all you want to do is stay?" Luke asked incredulously.

"Marching into a detention area is not what I had in mind," Han said, lounging further back into the chair he had claimed.

"But they're gonna kill her!" Luke couldn't believe the gall of the smuggler.

"Better her than me!" Han protested hotly. And yet...his hand automatically dropped down to brush against his upper leg where his SoulMark had been for most of his life. It spoke of an escape route. An escape route that they would need to take after mounting a rescue, perhaps? He had always assumed he would meet his Soulmate while in the midst of a smuggling heist; cutting off an escape route sounded like something he would do to bait Imperials into thinking they had him trapped. Heck, he had done it before (albeit unknowingly at the time, but hey, he had gotten away, and that's what counted!). But could the SoulMark really be referencing the rescue of this Princess? And even if it did, did he really want to get involved in something like that?

"She's rich," Luke said suddenly, temptingly.

Han sat up straighter. "Rich?" Chewie growled his interest at the sudden twist the conversation had taken.

"Rich. Powerful. Listen, if you were to rescue her, the reward would be…"

"What?" Han demanded.

"Well, more wealth than you can imagine!" Luke baited.

"I don't know, I can imagine quite a bit," Han pointed out.

"You'll get it," Luke promised.

"I better," Han warned, his mind already making the decision before he was fully aware of the fact.

"You will!" Luke vowed, before excitedly launching into his plan for them to rescue the Princess.

Han paid attention, for the most part. For the other part...well. All his life, he had never really known how to feel about the whole Soulmate thing. He hadn't been lying when he had told the Kid earlier that no all-powerful Force controlled his destiny. Han Solo went wherever he wanted, and did whatever he pleased; he took orders from no one. But he was Marked with the words that his supposed "perfect mate" would one day speak to him, and he was supposed to be okay with that? That just did not sit right with him.

Sure, there were stories out there of Soulmates who met, but who didn't stay together; or those who found each other minutes before one of them died. Those stories were more on par with the sort of life that the smuggler was used to: mainly, that life wasn't fair. But sometimes the more traitorous part of his mind thought that knowing there was someone out there for him was sort of nice. And when he started thinking like that, he tended to go and do crazy things...like walking into a detention center full of Imperial guards, on an Imperial battle station.

So when things went to hell, and he had known they would, he fell back on his oldest habit: shoot first, ask questions later. His smooth talking could have been better - "Luke, we're going to have company!" - but hey, they had survived this first firefight, and that was all that mattered.

Taking a moment to catch his breath, Han caught his partner's gaze. "What, Chewie?"

The Wookie merely let his gaze drop down to Han's left leg. Chewie was the only other being in the whole galaxy who knew what Han's Words were.

"Don't even think it," Han said, leveling a finger at his friend. "I'm not thinking it. I'm not!" he added in protest when Chewie let him know exactly what he thought of that statement. "Come on, there's no way! I mean, a Princess and a guy like me...it would be crazy! Let's just focus on all of us getting out of here alive, shall we?"

And as though Fate Herself had heard, there was suddenly a loud pounding against the door to the detention center, followed by blaster fire; someone was trying to force their way inside. And Han had a pretty good idea who. "Get behind me, get behind me!" he ordered Chewie before the shooting started up again.

The duo's shots hit home, but all too soon Han and Chewie were forced to abandon the main holding area and retreat down the corridor that Luke had disappeared down earlier. _Not good, not good._

Chewie growled out a heads up that Luke was coming up behind them, and that he had who he assumed was the Princess. "Can't get out that way," Han warned them as he fired off another shot. He took some joy in the fact that another Stormtrooper dropped; the other part of him was frantically trying to figure a way out of this mess. Maybe they could -

"Looks like you've managed to cut off our only escape route," came the Words, said in a scathing tone.

 _Shavit._

Han turned and looked down into a pair of brown eyes that were glaring back at him, but man were they full of spirit. "Maybe you'd like it back in your cell, Your Highness?" he asked sarcastically, because - Soulmate or not - no way was she going to pin the blame for this one him. It was not his fault!

But then her eyes widened, and he knew that he had just said her Words. And she was probably figuring out that she had said his Words, if he was reading the emotions flickering across her face correctly. And he knew his life would never be the same.


	2. Leia

_Han and Leia's "Soulmate meeting" from Leia's POV. Some quotes have been borrowed from Star Wars: A New Hope. I own nothing._

xxxxXXXXXxxxxXXXXXxxxxxxx

When Leia was truly old enough to consider the meaning of her Words...they scared her. And when she finally learned of her parent's involvement in the Rebellion, her Words truly frightened her. Oh, they didn't stop her from wanting to join the Rebellion, to fight, to help, as her parents were doing, but they still frightened her. Because they meant that one day she would be captured, and most likely she would be captured by the Empire.

Still, she was never one to back down from a fight, especially when the fate of the galaxy was at stake. So she plunged ahead with joining the Rebellion, and she gave it her all. Princess of Alderaan or not, she would be just as involved, go on just as many missions as everyone else.

And then the day came. Her "diplomatic mission to Alderaan" failed. She could only pray that the plans she had hidden away with R2-D2 would still reach General Kenobi. Otherwise…

When the door closed on her cell for the first time, she felt panic swell beneath her chest. This was real; the Words across her hip really had foretold her future. She was a prisoner of the Empire - of Governor Tarkin - and who knew what story had been leaked to the Senate, to her parents! Would they think her dead? And what of her Soulmate? Did this mean they were an Imperial?

She couldn't stomach the thought.

Taking several deep breaths, she pushed all panic aside. She couldn't afford to panic now. She knew what would come next. Darth Vader believed her to be a member of the Rebel Alliance, and she could not, would not, let him learn that he was right. If she was right, and torture was indeed their aim, she had to be ready. She would not fail her parents. She would not fail the Rebellion.

And then the pain came. So much pain. The torture...and Alderaan. Her people, her home, her culture, her parents. Gone. And it was all her fault. She hadn't broken, hadn't given in. She had stayed true to the Rebellion, and now the blood of millions was on her hands. Perhaps that would have been her final breaking point if not for...

"Aren't you a little short for a Stormtrooper?" Sarcasm. That's how she was dealing with her grief in this hour. The Trooper stared back at her, head tilted as though trying to figure out how to respond. Leia felt her breath catch, wondering if this was finally the moment, on top of everything else, that she would hear her Words finally spoken aloud.

"Huh? Oh, the uniform!" And then he was actually removing his helmet to reveal a man - boy? - just as young as she was, with the bluest eyes. _Familiar eyes._ "I'm Luke Skywalker, I'm here to rescue you!"

"You're who?" Leia asked as she slid off her so-called bed. She had not been expecting that response!

"I'm Luke Skywalker, I've got your R2 unit. I'm here with Ben Kenobi!" Luke explained eagerly.

And with those words and a little prompting, she was finally leaving that dark cell behind. Of course, they immediately ran into blaster fire from the true Stormtroopers, because breaking a Princess out the Detention Center of an Imperial Space Station just couldn't go smoothly.

Luke led her to whom she assumed were his partners, and the other human shouted something about there not being any other way out.

Again, her sarcasm reigned. "Looks like you've managed to cut off our only escape route!" Great. Not that she wasn't grateful for the rescue, but really, couldn't they have planned it out a little more carefully?

The man turned around to glare at her, but it wasn't threatening. More-so challenging. There was a fire, a spirit, in his eyes that she had so rarely seen in others. She would soon come to realize that it would rival even her own.

"Maybe you'd like it back in your cell, Your Highness?" he questioned, and her world stopped for the second time that day at his Words. Her Words.

Their eyes met, and an understanding passed between them. The secret was out, but there were more important things to focus on. Fight for their lives now, figure this Soulmate thing out later.

They had been talking (bickering, bantering?) during this whole silent exchange; they couldn't afford to waste even a second with more Stormtroopers arriving and adding to the confusion. But they were well and truly trapped with nowhere to go.

An idea entered her mind so quickly, she wondered if someone else hadn't thrust it in there. But she didn't think. Reaching over, she seized Luke's blaster, oblivious to his protests. At her Soulmate's protests, she snarked back, "Someone has to save our skins. Into the garbage chute, flyboy!"

And as she followed her own orders and dove past him (there would be time to learn his name later), she caught a glimpse of a smirk and a look in his eyes that may have been admiration. Maybe, just maybe, this whole Soulmate thing would work out for them.


	3. That Would Be Enough

"So. Soulmates." Okay, so Han was stating the obvious, but after the day they had just had...well, excuse him if he needed a few extra seconds to process things in order to talk about something as seemingly mundane (compared to fighting for his life) as Soulmates.

"It appears so," Leia said, eyes darting around the hallway they were walking down. The Death Star was destroyed, the ceremony honoring Han and Luke was over, as was the resulting party. And now… now she and Han were finally alone together. Seized by some sudden urge, she looked over at him and admitted, "I thought you were going to be an Imperial."

Han stared quizzically at her before remembering what he had said to her. _Perhaps you'd like it back in your cell, Your Highness._ "Oh, well, I was just…" Ok, so in hindsight maybe not the best thing to say to a person who they had just broken out of prison. But they had been in the midst of a firefight, and he was snarky at the best of times, and she -

"I know. Just, growing up without the context, and then when I was...well. I'm glad you're not an Imperial, anyway," Leia said, going back to looking at anything but Han.

"I'm a lot of things, sweetheart, but an Imperial? Never," he declared with a crooked grin.

"Just a smuggler," she shot back.

"Gotta make a living somehow," he said with a shrug. "We can't all grow up being fed with a silver spoon in an ivory tower."

"Marble."

"Huh?"

"The towers are made of...were made of…" and here Leia trailed off, what was clearly going to be a joke fading away as reality caught up to her.

Han cursed under his breath. "I didn't meant to - "

"No, I know you didn't," Leia said softly, her gaze unfocused and clearly elsewhere. She halted her steps, turning to stare back down the way they had come.

Han stopped next to her, taking care not to crowd her. "Look, Princess, if you want to talk about it…" he trailed off, his offer clear, but left unsaid. He could not begin to imagine what she was going through, losing her whole planet. But, as her Soulmate, he felt like he had to offer. That, and as a normal human being. Plus, he _wanted_ to offer. And later he would examine how much he had surprised himself with that thought and feeling.

"I-I don't know if you should call me that," Leia whispered.

"What, Princess?" Han asked, bewildered. Soulmate or not, they had only known each other for a few days. Calling her Leia seemed far too casual right now. "Would you prefer Sweetheart? Worshipfulness?" he added, trying to bring some levity back into the conversation.

"I don't know if I am a Princess anymore," she said, still just as quiet, still looking down the hallway.

Han's hands clenched into fists as a wave of helplessness swept over him. Luke would probably be better at this sort of thing, but never let it be said that Han Solo backed down from a challenge.

Shifting around so that he was in her new line of sight, he ducked down so that he could look squarely into her eyes. "Hey. Of course you're still a Princess. I may just be a simple smuggler, but just because this happened doesn't make you any less _you_. And you still have people out there, right? That's what that General said, that there were people off world, that there were survivors." So maybe he had been eavesdropping a little, sue him. It was coming in handy right now. "They will certainly still see you as their Princess, and so should you."

"But it's all my -"

"No," Han said fiercely. Damn, where was this sudden swell of protectiveness coming from? "Don't say that, don't even _think_ that! It's the Empire's fault. The Empire and Vader and no one else, you hear me?"

Leia finally focused back on Han, idly marveling at how quickly his role in her life had changed. From stranger to newly-discovered Soulmate to fellow fighter to...what was he now? Yes, he was her Soulmate, but they still barely knew each other (but she found that she wanted to change that). Would he join the Alliance? Would she be able to count him as a fellow Rebel? Did he even want to stay? She knew he had a price on his head. And yet here he was, trying to offer her comfort.

Did that mean she could count him as a friend?

"Thank you, Han," she whispered, offering him a small smile as the dark memories were temporarily pushed aside.

"Any time, Sweetheart," Han replied, giving her another one of his famous, crooked grins. And he found that he meant it. He didn't know what the future held for them (lots of fierce arguments in the early days, it would turn out, but he wouldn't give them up), but he knew one fact already.

He was already helplessly falling for one Leia Organa, Princess of Alderaan...and he was perfectly okay with that.


End file.
